Page 15 of Grave Danger

“It’s more complicated than that,” said Zahra. “Let me show you something.”

She walked across the room to a black lacquer wall unit, pulled a framed photograph from the shelf, and handed it to Jack.

Jack looked at it carefully. “Is this you?”

“No. That’s Ava.”

Jack handed it to Theo, who did a double take. “You two could have been twins.”

“Everybody says that,” said Zahra.

“But you told me in my office that Ava was ‘the pretty one.’ You look just like her.”

“Ava was the one everybody liked. It was her personality. Her sparkle. That’s what made her ‘the pretty one.’”

Theo handed the photograph back to Zahra, who laid it on the table.

“So, I have a little girl waiting on a cup of water,” she said. “Are we agreed, no police?”

“I’ll respect your choice,” said Jack. “But I’m still concerned about your safety, staying here.”

“There’s always my place,” said Theo.

“Excuse me?” said Zahra.

“I meant the apartment above my club,” said Theo.

“Theo owns a jazz bar in Coconut Grove,” added Jack.

“It’s called Cy’s Place,” said Theo. “My great-uncle Cy used to live in the apartment above it. He’s in his nineties now, and the stairs got to be too much for him. I live right across the hall.”

“In other words, it’s safe,” said Jack.

“Thank you, but I’m not moving my daughter into an apartment above a bar.”

“Fair enough,” said Jack. “But Theo as your bodyguard is not a bad idea.”

“I thought I wasyourbodyguard,” said Theo.

“I’m married to an FBI agent who can shoot the cap off a Coke bottle from fifty yards away. I’ll survive.”

“I don’t need a bodyguard,” said Zahra.

“Two minutes ago, you told me Farid is a bully and an abuser.”

“Okay, fine. If Farid and the Revolutionary Guard come crashing in here and take us hostage, I keep a spare key in the bird feeder on the back patio. You and Theo can come save us.”

Jack didn’t respond. She wasn’t the first overstressed client to snap at him.

“I’m so sorry,” said Zahra after taking a deep breath. “I know you’re just trying to help.”

“No apology needed,” said Jack. “Actually, protection is only part of my thinking. This is going to be a difficult case. The legal hurdles for a mother accused of kidnapping her child are very high. We have to prove in court that returning Yasmin to her father would put her in grave danger of physical or psychological harm. And we have to prove it by ‘clear and convincing evidence,’ which is very close to the ‘reasonable doubt’ standard in criminal court.”

“I can prove it,” said Zahra. “Both physical and psychological. And it will be clear and convincing.”

“Proof requires evidence,” said Jack.

“Isn’t my own testimony ‘evidence’?”